1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to fishing rods and, in particular, to lighted fishing rods for fishing either in daylight or in the dark.
2. Background of the Art
It is known that many species of fish are more active at dawn or dusk or at night or other times when lighting conditions are poor. Thus, fishing is frequently better during these periods and many people prefer to fish at these times. Because of the darkness, however, it is more difficult to see the end of the rod. This makes it harder, if not impossible, to observe the movement of the end of the rod when a fish is attempting to take the bait.
Various forms of lighted or illuminated fishing rods have been heretofore proposed for solving this problem. U.S. Pat. No. 5,172,508 (Schmidt et al.) describes the use of a removable flashlight unit in the handle of a fishing rod for illuminating the ends of fiber optic cables running up the hollow interior of the fishing pole.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,357,410 (Cota et al.) describes a light bulb located in an outer section of a fishing pole and connected to a mercury switch located at the tip of the pole for detecting jerking movement of the end of the pole. When the mercury switch detects movement, the light bulb is turned on to light up the outer section of the pole.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,738,433 (Sparks) describes a light bulb in the handle of a fishing pole for illuminating optical fibers extending up the hollow interior of the pole. The light bulb is connected in circuit with a sensor switch located at the tip end of the pole so that the light bulb is turned on when a fish strikes at the bait.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,149,286 describes a fishing rod having a hollow pole for supporting a fishing line, the pole having a handle end and a tip end. A hollow handle is affixed to the handle end of the pole. A laser beam producing unit is located within the handle structure and aligned to transmit a laser beam into the hollow interior of the pole in the direction of the tip end of the pole.